An Eccentric Life
by Milquetoast95
Summary: A sequel of the one-shot Eccentrically Gaudy, wherein the Atobe family lives their normal life after their wedding. Well, as normal as an Atobe life can be.
1. Another Atobe

**I'm trash for not updating in so long and then all of a sudden starting a new story. My bad, LOL. However, I just wanted to publish this as a place to save the story. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

The bump on her belly was more than enough to make all of Japan go wild. Atobe Hitomi, international celebrity and wife of the head of Atobe Conglomerate was eight months pregnant. Her well known status had caused overseas talk, going all the way to Hollywood. Her relation to Atobe Inc had even caused a stir in the business world.

"All this craziness over you... You truly are Keigo's child." Hitomi muttered as she laid a hand on her stomach. She smiled as the butler before her placed her latest craving of steak, eggs, and Alfredo pasta on the table.

"Thank you, Michael."

Michael's weathered smile shone back at her. He had been reminded of the first time he had placed food in front of the then middle school Hitomi, and seeing how she's grown into a woman having her own child, with none other than Atobe Keigo, was a sight he knew he would remember.

"Of course, my lady, anything for you and the young master."

Young master no longer meant Atobe; the title had now been given to their child, ever since Hitomi had announced the gender of the baby. Atobe's joy after finding out was almost incomparable, because the prospect of teaching his son to grow into the head of the business gave him a swelling sense of excitement. As much as Japan preferred a son as head of corporation, Hitomi knew that even if they had a daughter Atobe would raise her into an heiress with as much fervor. In fact, it seemed that everything Atobe was doing was with twice as much excitement as before. This of course translated to aggression in business deals, and who could go against a father to be?

Newspapers and headlines outlined and followed Atobe's path, from attaining the company to growing the company, and attention grabbing headlines spoke of how this was all to set up his family for generations to come. There had been some drama between Hitomi's own family, let alone Atobe's.

She couldn't believe that it was easier for her to take leave from her job as an actress than it was to shake off her father, who she hadn't spoken to since high school. She hadn't even known of his presence until the daily paper had arrived in the morning, spreading rumors of how her father had been released from jail and was seeking repentance. Atobe made her promise not to step outside the house, and he made her promise not to do a thing about the matter until he had arrived home from work. Hitomi had listened to him, knowing that, even if she did decide to contact her father, she would still want Atobe there with her. If she didn't have to go through the matter alone, then she decided she won't. And for that Atobe was grateful.

To relieve the press of the subject, Atobe had already prepared a meeting. It was to be a formal setting, in the Atobe office, and it would involve the three adults.

That didn't stop it from getting violent.

Years in jail did not do well for the Ito patriarch. His business had dwindled and had been seized by Atobe Inc, his reputation had been smeared for life, and his lifestyle of luxury had changed to one close to homelessness. He was not a happy man, and Hitomi had begun to realize he had never been happy.

When he had begged for forgiveness, Hitomi had been willing to grant it. But she felt her heart break when she saw her father's eyes glint with something she hadn't seen in years, but Atobe was accustomed to in almost every business deal. Her father was, once again, trying to manipulate her for his benefit. Atobe would have none of it, and spoke forthright of it.

Hitomi's father would visit according to a set, contracted schedule, but would have nothing to do with the lifestyle of his daughter and her child. The contract would stipulate that he would never gain a penny from either as well.

Her father had lunged at not only Atobe, but at her as well, causing her to stumble back momentarily. Afterwards, he had been apprehended by security in less than thirty seconds.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Atobe had asked.

Hitomi shook her head, placing her hand on her stomach instinctually, "No..."

But Atobe could see that she was lying. She hadn't been hurt physically, no, but the emotional and mental blow was enough to knock the woman off her feet. She had sat down in the office chair, his chair, to catch her breath and later that night Atobe had made sure to spoil her a little more than usual.

Hitomi finished up her plate of cravings soon, and with the help of Michael and a handmaiden stood up.

"Thank you," She laughed lightly, "I can't believe I need help just standing up now."

"It's only for a little while longer, Atobe-sama." The handmaiden said to her, "And it'll all be worth it in the end."

"I know, but I do wish that Keigo wouldn't worry so much. It worries me." Hitomi admit to the two. Ever since the latest ordeal with her father, and with the due date coming closer and closer, Atobe had made sure that Hitomi was well looked after, going so far as cutting into her alone time. While she knew that she was always looked after, the type that Atobe had entrusted as of late was different. It was more persistent on making sure she moved as little as possible, or had help doing any simple task herself.

The only alone time she had was in the bathroom now, and after changing and getting ready for the night at 3pm, Hitomi was grateful that pregnancy made her go to the bathroom more often.

Except this time was different.

The sudden pain made her double over, and Hitomi felt water and blood drip down her legs. She struggled when standing up and getting to the door.

"M-Michael!" She called for him immediately, crying out in pain as she felt the baby pushing down on her.

He was there in a mere five seconds. In the back of Hitomi's head she never understood how the old butler had managed to always be there when called for, but she was grateful.

"Something's wrong with the- agh!" Michael helped her stay upright as she held her stomach, "The baby. There's something wrong with the baby!"

For a second his eyes widened just the slightest, and the chaos began, "Julia! Have George out front, we need to get Lady Atobe to the hospital!"

Michael and a butler had taken her hands and were gently guiding her to the car as she felt the pain worsen.

"Michael!" She yelled as she got in the car during an uncomfortable spasm, "What about Keigo?"

"Don't worry, my lady." Michael had taken a phone out of his very own pocket, and was in the process of calling as he closed the door to the car, "To the hospital, George! Quickly!"

Hitomi tried to remember what she had been coached to do. Her breathing was as deep and as steady as she could make it, but the contractions were getting more painful by the second it seemed.

* * *

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any characters/plot/etc., of the PoT manga/anime.**


	2. A New Day

"I-I'm sorry for disturbing, Atobe-san." Atobe's assistant, Yusuke, stuttered out apologetically, "But it's regarding your wife."

Atobe raised a brow. The only one capable of getting to him in such a short time would be either Hitomi, his parents, or Michael.

"Ah~n? Tell Michael I'll be done soon."

"Sir, it's an emergency." Yusuke frowned.

Even Atobe's business partners had understood the somber tone of Atobe's assistant. The head of the corporation that Atobe was speaking with stood up, holding his hand out.

"I understand you're needed elsewhere, Atobe-san. We'll meet again another time, and I'll follow your wishes for now to hold back on my dealings until you've returned to work."

"Thank you." Atobe shook his hand, watching almost impatiently as they left. As soon as their backs were turned he grabbed the jacket off his chair and his cellphone, looking at Yusuke.

"Cancel my meetings for the rest of the day."

"Yes sir, Michael will call you on your personal cellphone."

Atobe nodded, "Very well. I want the helicopter ready for me by the time I step off the elevator."

"Yes, sir."

What could possibly be happening? Atobe answered the cellphone, and listened as Michael explained.

* * *

"Where is she?" Atobe asked as soon as he entered the hospital.

George pointed down the hall, "They put her in room 217, left side, sir."

Atobe rushed to the room, seeing doctors and nurses hustle in and out.

"Hitomi!"

After a painful cry Hitomi tried to peek through the curtain, "Keigo?"

"Sir, we need you to step outside for just a moment." The nurse said, standing in Atobe's way.

"What? That's my wife in there." Atobe's glare almost made the nurse break protocol, but the doctor's call for the nurse made her push him towards the door.

"We'll call you once she's stabilized, sir. Just sit tight, please!"

"Stabilized? What the hell is going on?!" Atobe barked at the door.

* * *

This wasn't how it was supposed to be. She should have been holding her son by now, watching him sleep and seeing his tiny chest breathing up and down. Maybe even seen him cry.

She didn't have the heart to hold him, and turned her head away, trying desperately not to cry herself. Her hands gripped the blankets underneath, bunching them up in a vain attempt to release the anger within her. She was too exhausted and worn out to throw a tantrum. The doctors and nurses cleared out after cleaning the mess made during labor, leaving her alone with Atobe.

Atobe, on the other hand, had glanced at his son before they took him away. He would never forget the little one's face. Before he could find a way to release the anger inside him he felt Hitomi's hand slip into his.

She looked down, avoiding eye contact as she frowned, "I'm sorry..."

"You did nothing wrong." He sat down beside her, pulling her into his arms as he kissed the top of her head. Feeling his love for her caused her to break down, crying into his chest as he tried to console her.

She could feel his tears land on her head.

"We will get through this." He said to her, "We will get through this together."

Kamiko's hand covered her mouth instinctively as she gasped at the news the doctor had given. Apparently Atobe had told the doctor that it was okay to tell his friends waiting outside. He wasn't going to be seeing them for at least another couple of hours.

"Oh no..." The Echizen's heart broke for the couple.

A still born during labor was uncommon, and to hear how the baby died because of a tangled umbilical cord was heartwrenching, especially when Kamiko had seen how religiously Hitomi had kept up with her health.

"Is there anything we can do for them at this time?" Fuji asked, bringing his arm around Kamiko's shoulder to pull her close to him. The girl was shell shocked, on the verge of tears, and Fuji couldn't imagine what the Atobe couple was feeling.

"We have a midwife who specializes in helping the grieving process of parents, if they want to talk to someone. But your support is going to be very crucial in making sure they can overcome this. Despite how well her pregnancy went, this is one of those things where we may never have an answer as to why it happened."

Fuji nodded, thanking the doctor for his time before sitting down with Kamiko.

"Are we late?!"

Shishido ran in with Oshitari, and sensed something wrong with the couple immediately.

"Why the long faces?" Oshitari asked.

Kamiko frowned, and Fuji was the one to reply, "The baby didn't survive."

* * *

She didn't feel like getting out of bed. Hell, she didn't feel anything sometimes. She couldn't go outside for fear of the press bombarding her. A nosy patient had heard of the still birth, and leaked it to the media. Atobe didn't go back to work for one week, and the two didn't know what to do. They kept up somber appearances for everyone in the house, for friends and family that would come by to see how they were doing, and sometimes even to each other. But they both felt like breaking down.

Hitomi once found Atobe staring at the crib that was supposed to be in their room, his tears falling onto the polished wood.

Atobe found Hitomi in the baby room, sobbing hysterically with a stuffed animal clutched in her hands.

They both realized that they would have to try to resume their lives before the baby. So Atobe forced himself to go to work, and Hitomi was currently trying to force herself to get out of bed.

"Keigo is at work... I can at least get up."

She sat up easily, throwing the covers off of her as she urged herself to at least accomplish a daily task. But the fact that she could so easily get up, or even see her feet, reminded her of the lack of life. Her baby had died before she could even have a chance to raise him. But she had already loved him so much.

She felt like it was going to be another miserable day.

* * *

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any characters/plot/etc., of the PoT manga/anime.**


	3. Letting Go & Starting Anew

With time, things got easier and their lives slowly started returning to a level of normalcy. Hitomi decided she wanted to stay in Japan for awhile, helping produce local talent and fund projects she thought had potential. It caused a small uproar in the American news, as the Japanese star was in the middle of publicity for the release of a new movie. The company she dealt with in America said they just wanted her obligation for the premiere night in Hollywood, and she wouldn't have to go to any other publicity stunt or interview. She agreed immediately so that she could stay in Japan.

"Keigo," Hitomi approached him as he was on his way out for the day, "I'd like to talk to you about something tonight. Will you be back in time for dinner?"

He nodded, "Of course. What's this talk about, hm~n?"

"You'll find out tonight." She tilted her head up and waited for Atobe to bend down, letting her kiss his cheek. He returned the kiss before leaving for work.

"Ja, I'll see you tonight then."

Hours later, Hitomi regret not asking him right there and then. It wasn't much of a talk anyhow, she had just wanted to ask him something! And it wasn't anything bad, so she didn't understand why she was nervous about it. By the time they were having dinner together Atobe could sense her nervousness, and decided to veer away from whatever topic she was bringing up by talking about something else. It helped Hitomi's anxieties, so much so that she had gathered the courage to speak with him when they were alone in their bedroom.

He was already lying in bed, reading the news and waiting for her as she was in the bathroom. To him, the topic at hand could have been one of three things: her father, her next project overseas, or something to do with children.

She sat at the edge of the bed, his side of the bed, facing him yet looking everywhere but at him. He had to place his tablet down, chuckling to himself at how nervous she was despite being one of the most courageous women he'd ever had the chance to meet.

"Are you ready to talk?"

She nodded. After years together she knew that his Insight would always be a part of who he was. His observant nature rarely landed him on the wrong side of things, and oftentimes helped him understand what she was unable to voice out, as rare as that may be.

"I've been thinking," She nodded, and after letting out a deep breath she looked at him, holding his hands and scooting closer to him , "When I'm ready, when you're ready... When we're _both_ ready, I want to try for another baby."

"I couldn't agree more." Atobe smiled at her, nodding with admiration at how she had the will to go through it all again. "We'll have to make an appointment with the doctors about when will be a good time. But it's a worthy idea."

She laughed at his grandiose sentence of worthiness, remembering how arrogant he was in middle school and high school. He was just as arrogant now, yet somehow more refined in that it translated to a sense of confident leadership.

She hoped their next child would have his confidence.

* * *

Atobe had told her of previous occurrences regarding kidnappings in his family, there were a few times when attempted kidnappings had taken place while she was there. It was usually for ransom, or some type of corporate espionage. The fact that she was now a target as well had never occurred to her before; the previous kidnappers were always going for Atobe. She felt naive now.

Atobe had woken her up by edging closer to her, grabbing her arm firmly and moving her so that she would be shielded from the masked figures surrounding their bed.

"Hm?" Hitomi was still half asleep when he had pulled her closer to him.

"Stay as far behind me as you can." He uttered to her, his stern tone had been more than enough to wake her then, and when she saw three shadow like figures she gasped quietly.

She saw Atobe looking at the figure standing at the foot of his bed, "What is it that you want?"

"The Atobe Conglomerate has a secret we want. A secret that you know." The man's voice was deepened by an electronic device.

"My company has many secrets."

Hitomi had instinctively moved and grabbed Atobe's arm as a man approached her from her side of the bed, "Stop being a smart ass!"

"Stop." It was clear that the man speaking to Atobe was the leader, as his accomplice backed away, "We want your experiments in the army sector of your company. Give us that and you won't have to worry about us harming you."

"Harm me all you want, but you won't be getting anything for months. There's protocols to prevent anyone from invading the privacy of the company."

"We prefer a more subtle way of dealing with pain. The kind that the public eye won't be able to see."

"Keigo..." Hitomi felt her voice waver, and inwardly cursed her naivety. The man at her side turned the safety of the gun off with a threatening click, the barrel staring straight at her.

"This is _my_ company! If you want anything done you go through _me_!" Atobe demanded that they turn their attention on him, and the figure in front of them chuckled.

"You'll see her again in a couple months. Sooner, if you can get through those pesky protocols."

"H-hey! Let go!" Hitomi struggled against the man pulling her away from the bed, kicking her legs back as he put his arms around her and dragged her away from Atobe. "Keigo!"

"Hitomi!" Atobe was having his own trouble with the other two men holding him down, "Unhand me!"

"Let go! Let… go…"

"Give us what we want, and you'll get her back. We'll be in touch."

* * *

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any characters/plot/etc., of the PoT manga/anime.**


	4. Okay

It had been a week, the longest week of Atobe's life. He had all of Japan, it seemed, looking for her. Even the media was in a frenzy, talking about how the Japanese celebrity had been kidnapped from her own home because of corporate espionage.

When Atobe had come to he realized that he had been hit on the back of the head, knocking him out while they smuggled Hitomi out of the household. How they were able to keep her quiet enough so no one could hear was a mystery until the police found an emptied syringe. Atobe and the authorities assumed it was a tranquilizer of some sort.

"We'll find her." Kamiko had assured him an hour ago, hand in hand with Fuji. "She couldn't have left Japan, everyone's screening people on boats and planes. So we'll find her."

They had come to support Atobe, despite his wishes of not being bothered. He didn't want any distractions while he led his own operation, aside from the authorities', to find Hitomi. She was his wife, his responsibility. She was his life.

He hadn't slept for more than an hour or a two at a time, and that had only happened because he had passed out in exhaustion. Michael couldn't even convince him to rest. After all, every hour she was in the hands of his enemies was an hour too many.

The three were jolted upwards when the doors to his operations room burst open. A security guard panted heavily.

"Sir," He said as he tried to regain his breath, "We've found her."

* * *

The lights were blinding, Hitomi thought. She could see dots in her unfocused vision, and felt her mind scrambling as the people in front of her shuffled her around. They examined her, took blood for tests and were poking and prodding her endlessly. The only time she had truly found herself settled into a seat was when the police had come into her room and began questioning her.

"I don't..." She couldn't believe how hoarse her voice sounded, "I can't remember a lot. It was fuzzy."

"Could you see their faces?"

All she had seen was a damp room and metal chains holding her down. One pillow and a rough blanket on the bed. And she saw food once a day.

She shook her head, "Wait. No that's not right."

She had been locked in a posh hotel bedroom, with soft sheets and a five star bathroom. She had even had a tv to watch how the news reported her kidnapping.

"I-I'm sorry, wait that can't be it."

Why was she remembering a room of metal? The only thing on the walls were pictures of her and Atobe, as if someone had been spying on them.

The heart monitor was beeping furiously as Hitomi breathed harder, panicking because she was having so many different scenarios in her head that she felt like she was going crazy.

The beeping had stopped, shocking Hitomi so much she opened her eyes and realized that she wasn't in a hospital; she was in an interrogation room.

"How did I-" She looked confused, and dazed, the two officers observed.

"Do you know where you are, Lady Atobe?" One officer asked.

Hitomi looked around, and saw how fearful she looked in the mirror, "I- I could have sworn we were in the hospital just now..."

"You were telling us of the different places you were being kept."

"Had I?" Hitomi asked, "Oh... I'm sorry, I just... It's all very fuzzy."

"That's alright. Don't worry about what you saw. Could you describe what you heard?"

Water. She hadn't had water for what seemed like forever, and the sound of running water tortured her in the dark and damp room.

But the sounds of the cars in the streets down below her hotel room honked loud enough for her to know she was in the city.

Hitomi grabbed her head and looked down, "I'm so sorry... Their voices were so cold. One was altered while he spoke, I think. The other sounded so familiar. But I thought they were the same. I think. A-actually, I don't know."

Kamiko felt her heart breaking as she watched from behind the two way mirror. Her friend's mental state was broken. She couldn't imagine how Atobe felt right now, as he watched Hitomi go crazy by trying to figure out where she was held and who had taken her.

"Where did they find her?" Kamiko asked quietly to the police chief.

"Wandering in the streets. We started getting calls of people spotting her just below the screens projecting the news of her kidnapping. They said she was disoriented, we didn't realize just how bad it was."

"Whoever it was is quite bold." Fuji commented solemnly. Hitomi was being taken back to the hospital. Everyone had thought it best to keep her there overnight.

"They were arrogant. I want the tapes of every camera in the area." Atobe ordered as he went to follow her to the hospital. "Find whatever or whoever dropped her off."

* * *

Nobody knew if Hitomi would ever go back to normal. Hell, she didn't even know what normal was to her. She was very quiet nowadays, and rarely spoke to anyone, even Atobe.

He had left Michael solely responsible to take care of her whenever he had to leave or wasn't in her immediate vicinity. It seemed she spoke to Michael more anyway. She couldn't really look Atobe in the eye, despite him being there for her every step of the way. He had seen her slowly pushing him further and further away and he was terrified of losing her completely.

"I'll be gone for the next two days." He told her, and kissed the top of her head.

He had felt her flinch, but she forced a smile as she looked up at him and nodded silently.

The meeting had gone over longer than Atobe would have liked, and as such resulted in his two day trip turning into a four day one. He counted it as five, honestly, because it had been midnight when he'd finally gotten home. He made sure to be as quiet as possible, so as not to disturb Hitomi.

Once he had slipped under the covers, he had made sure to keep an appropriate distance from her. Any physical contact and Hitomi would become extremely uncomfortable, so he did his best to accommodate her. Despite his understanding, he had felt hurt himself. He had only held himself back from Hitomi a few times, and trying to refrain himself from even being able to hold her seemed foreign to him. Not only that, but it had taken her years to not be able to flinch at physical contact, years of support and encouragement had gone down the drain in the span of a week.

"Keigo?" He heard before he began to fall asleep, he turned to his side to face her, and was surprised when she leaned into him, taking his arm and placing it around her waist. "Thank you."

His touch had been hesitant at first, but after seeing that she was okay with what she had done, he pulled her closer to him, kissing the top of her head.

Those years of support weren't gone, he realized. And Hitomi knew that. That's how she was going to be okay.

* * *

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any characters/plot/etc., of the PoT manga/anime.**


End file.
